Trip to KC...

Last Saturday, I had the most fabulous time at a shower thrown for me by my sisters-in-law, Julie and Lindsay. They threw the most special party to celebrate Naomi's little life. All the details were just too cute. You walked in the door to the sight of a precious tutu...

Little shoes, all to be placed on my daughter's feet one day, were found around the house in different places! So fun! Thanks to her mimi, the contributer of many of these goodies, this child is going to be better dressed than I am by far!

And it didn't stop there - the brunch table was wonderful, complete with Julie's Norwegian cake, Lindsay's awesome "bee" cupcakes, and a fruit baby buggy. :)

I think the best part of this day, however, was seeing all of these wonderful women come to support Grant and I as we journey into parenthood. Many of the ladies who attended were women for whom I had nannied their children for years. It was so special to have time with all of these people and I cannot express my gratitude for all of the generous, practical, and sweet gifts we received for the baby. I was truly overwhelmed by the end of the day. Thank you so much to all of those who love us in Kansas City - we miss you all dearly and are so grateful for your support!

So Blessed...

Yesterday, I had my first baby shower! I was so excited to have Kristin and Alyssa, two of my best friends from college, offer to throw me a get together for people close to us in Indiana. Some of my other closest friends from college were even able to drive into town for a visit and join us! Grant and I were showered with a blessed array of practical things for Naomi's arrival, in addition to the frilly extras that all little girls need. :) The girls did an amazing job at making it special and so cute. Kristin is so creative with her decorating and they both are amazing cooks! So much for laying low on the carbs, as recommended by my midwives... hahaha!

Food table...

Favors for the guests - foam soap - so cute!

'N' for Naomi - Alyssa's yummy creation. :)

Table with pictures of Grant and me as babies...

Guests!

Hostesses with the mostest! Thank you two so much - I felt so blessed and loved. What a fun, special day!

We Love Our Moms!!!

Happy Mother's Day! Grant and I are so grateful to wake up and have a day where we think about our wonderful mothers and what great models we have in them.

We both have the most incredible moms. They are so giving and selfless, always putting their children first. It is especially wonderful to celebrate them today when this is the first Mother's Day where I actually have some part in it as a mother myself! Early this morning, I walked into the house to find my first Mother's Day card and flowers from Grant. So sweet. Oh, if only I can follow in the footsteps of our moms who did such a good job in the first place...The card from Grant is addressed to "MOM: (That's you! Not mine, of course.:)" Lol...

OFFICIALLY Third Trimester...

There is a debate out there about when your third trimester starts. Some say 27 weeks, some say 28. Regardless of what's "right," I'm in it now! We hit 28-weeks yesterday and thus, have about 12 weeks to go. And folks, the mini dresses are starting to roll in... :) We went to Louisville, KY, last weekend to visit a group of our friends and were blessed one dinner with the following goodies:

With my growing belly, it is becoming so much more a reality that there will be a tiny body VERY soon to put into these clothes! So fun. We continue to pray that the next three months will be full of wonderful times together while it's only the two of us, guidance from the Lord regarding our next steps as a family, and continued good health for me and Naomi. I really am feeling wonderful, minus a particular rib that is making me quite uncomfortable. If you think to pray about that for me, I'd take it! We are always so grateful for all of the prayers and support we have from our friends and family. Off to work, now. :)

Week of the Eggplant

Weeks 25-28 supposedly make up the window where our baby is the size of an eggplant. I think I'm gonna beg to differ. There has GOT to be more than an eggplant in there! :)

Whew! Needless to say, I am starting to have a little more difficulty moving around and getting out of bed. A lady came into the hospital the other day at 40 weeks, ready to have her baby. I kid you not, we looked like the same person. Hmmm... maybe God, Grant and I need to recalculate this whole "due date" thing!

Megan and Michael Time...

One fun activity during this 26th week was that our dear and closest friends, Megan & Michael came to visit, as they are on a nationwide tour of their newest alternative country album, "Over the Bones." Go to www.meganbirdsall.com to check her out - she's amazing! You can follow their tour live on Youtube. It was so fun to spend some quality time with M&M and the perfect closure to my second trimester. That's right folks, the THIRD trimester has arrived! We're closing in on the finish line and have lots yet to prepare. Things are getting exciting around here!

A Day to Celebrate!

Many things are happening today. Early this morning, I was awakened for the first time out of my sleep by Naomi kicking. She is getting so much stronger! I proceeded to lay awake for about another hour as she played around, obviously having no awareness of it being 5:30am. It was so sweet.

Then I woke up to discover that around that time, 5:55am exactly (according to the tracking website), UPS was loading up her crib bedding to bring it to our house today! She must have just been excited. :) So, it has arrived. I jumped up and down like a kid when the UPS guy drove down the street. It's kind of the one thing we splurged on and I have no regrets - it's so cute!

I'm considering it a gift to myself and Nay for making it to 26 weeks. It's so amazing to me that at this point, if she were born, there is a 70% chance of survival with no major problems. That is just amazing to me. Not what we're looking for... I'm all about a 40+ week baby! But it's amazing, nonetheless, to think that she is that developed!! Grant wasn't here at the house a bit ago, so I just took today's picture myself. Grow, baby, grow!

But the most special thing happening today is that this precious baby below is turning 18. My "baby" brother is an adult. It is kind of hitting me harder than I thought it would - it's just taking a while to sink in. I loved that sweet baby and getting to play being his second mommy (I was 12 when he was born). This picture just makes me want to squish him back down to that chunky little thing. Okay, he was more chunky than he was little. ELEVEN pounds, 8.5 ounces at birth. Cheers to you, Mom.

Anyway, it's a nice reminder to me to really cherish every minute that Naomi is a baby. Because pretty soon, they turn into this:

Will, I am so proud of you. You are one of the most mature, respectful, God-fearing 18-year-olds I know. I hope you have so much fun today! You deserve the best - happy birthday!!!